System and method for initiating returns over a network

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides systems and methods for processing return transactions over a network. An embodiment of the invention discloses an online return application that generates an electronic return shipping label that can be delivered to a browser of a customer that wishes to make a return. Also, disclosed is the creation and transmission of label delivery links, which provide for dynamic generation and delivery of shipping labels.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No.11/828,864, filed Jul. 26, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,430,527 which is adivisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/098,634, filed Mar. 13, 2002(now U.S. Pat. No. 7,266,513 that issued on Sep. 4, 2007), which claimspriority to Provisional Application No. 60/275,861, filed Mar. 14, 2001,all of which are hereby incorporated herein in their entirety byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a method and system for providing returnshipping labels to merchants and customers as part of an electronicreturn system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The increased popularity of the World Wide Web has led to an explosionin catalog and online shopping. The growth in e-commerce reflects inpart increased purchases from veteran online shoppers, deeper Internetpenetration across the country and the increased number of familiarbricks-and-mortar retailers online.

Some of the benefits to purchasing products online include the abilityto avoid crowds, perform quick price comparisons across multiplesellers, and access a wider selection of products. However, there aredrawbacks to purchasing goods through a retailer web site. One drawbackis the inability to inspect an item before making the purchase. Aconsumer that buys a product offline at a traditional retail storeusually has the opportunity to inspect the color, size and quality ofworkmanship of a good before the purchase is made. In contrast, when aconsumer shops online their decision to purchase is based largely on awritten description of the product and/or a photograph of the item. Noopportunity to inspect the product occurs until after the product ispurchased and shipped to the consumer. As a result, many products thatare purchased online are returned.

The typical return transaction involves a customer contacting amerchant, via email or phone, to inform the merchant that the customerintends to return an item previously purchased from the merchant. Afterapproving the return, the merchant obtains a return shipping label froma commercial carrier, such as the United Parcel Service (UPS), and mailsthe return shipping label to the customer, along with any specialinstructions on how to package the item to be returned. Next, thecustomer repackages the item, affixes the return shipping label to thepackage and drops the package off with the shipper, who delivers it tothe merchant.

This return process is both time consuming and highly manual. It usuallytakes a week or more for the merchant to obtain a return shipping labelfrom a carrier and have the label mailed to the consumer. In addition,the merchant must have customer service representatives available toreceive and approve the customer return request, and to initiate therequest to the carrier to have a return shipping label generated.Further, if the label is lost or destroyed in the mailing process,additional delays and expense can result as the consumer contacts themerchant and re-initiates the returns process.

An alternative returns process is sometimes used to avoid some of thedelays discussed above. In the alternative returns process, the merchanthas a return shipping label generated for every product sold andencloses the label with the product when it is sent to the customer. Thebenefit of the alternative return process is that a customer that wishesto return an item no longer needs to contact the merchant and alreadyhas the label required to return the good. While this eliminates many ofthe delays inherent in the traditional returns process, the merchant isat a disadvantage. By including a return shipping label when the productis sent to the customer, the merchant essentially abrogates the right torefuse a return. And because the merchant is not notified when acustomer decides to return an item, the merchant has no idea as to whichor how many items are going to be returned, which can lead to inventorymanagement problems. In addition, if the shipping label sent to theconsumer is missing, lost or destroyed, the delays associated withproviding a replacement shipping label return.

A need therefore exists in the industry for a returns system thateliminates the delays inherent in the traditional returns process yetallows a merchant to retain to have knowledge and control of theprocess. Thus, an unsatisfied need exists for an improved method andsystem for handling product returns that overcomes deficiencies in theprior art, some of which are discussed above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will nowbe made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn toscale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a high-level block diagram of an electronic return system inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a high-level process flow diagram that shows severalembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a high-level block diagram that illustrates the operation ofan electronic return system in accordance with a first embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIGS. 4A-4F are illustrative screen shots of web pages that a customeruses to navigate a merchant return system in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 5A-5B show a record layout of a return service request inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a return shipping label and label instruction area inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows a record layout of a return service response in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 8A-8B illustrate an electronic return notification in accordancewith an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a high-level block diagram that illustrates the operation ofan electronic return system in accordance with a second embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 10 is a high-level block diagram that illustrates the operation ofan electronic return system in accordance with a third embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 11 is a process flow diagram that illustrates a method of handlingundeliverable emails in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides systems and methods for processing returntransactions over a network. An embodiment of the invention discloses anonline return application that generates an electronic return shippinglabel that can be delivered to a browser of a customer that wishes tomake a return. Also, disclosed is the creation and transmission of labeldelivery links, which provide for dynamic generation and delivery ofshipping labels.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to electronically deliver the shippinglabel to the customer.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to electronically deliver the shippinglabel to the customer; and wherein further the online return applicationis configured to store an electronic image of the shipping label, andsend to the customer a link associated with the stored electronic image.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to electronically deliver the shippinglabel to the customer; and wherein further the online return applicationis configured to store an electronic image of the shipping label, andsend to the merchant a link associated with the stored electronic image.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to format and send a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform locator address.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to format and send a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform locator address; and wherein the online returnapplication is configured to send the label delivery link to themerchant via electronic mail.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to format and send a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform locator address and wherein the uniform resourcelocator of the label delivery link corresponds to a label generationapplication, the label generation application configured to deliver theshipping label to a browser associated with the customer upon activationof the label delivery link.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to format and send a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform locator address and wherein the uniform resourcelocator of the label delivery link corresponds to a label generationapplication, the label generation application configured to deliver theshipping label to a browser associated with the customer upon activationof the label delivery link; and wherein further the label generationapplication is a Java application.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to format and send a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform locator address and wherein the uniform resourcelocator of the label delivery link corresponds to a label generationapplication, the label generation application configured to deliver theshipping label to a browser associated with the customer upon activationof the label delivery link; and wherein further the label delivery linkincludes at least one of a package tracking number, a locality string, amerchant registration identification and a shipping label creation date.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention an electronicreturn shipping system is disclosed that includes a merchant applicationresiding on a merchant computer, the merchant application configured togenerate a return service request in response to a request from acustomer to return a good previously purchased from a merchant; anonline return application in electronic communication with the merchantapplication; the online return application configured to receive thereturn service request and generate a shipping label based at least inpart on the return service request; and wherein the online returnapplication is further configured to format and send a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform locator address and wherein the uniform resourcelocator of the label delivery link corresponds to a label generationapplication, the label generation application configured to deliver theshipping label to a browser associated with the customer upon activationof the label delivery link; wherein further the online returnapplication is configured to generate an electronic return notificationthat contains both a human-readable area and a machine-readable area.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request, wherein the return service request containsshipping information, the shipping information comprising an addressassociated with the customer and an address associated with a consignee;assigning a package tracking number to said return transaction;generating the shipping label based at least in part on the shippinginformation and the package tracking number; and providing the shippinglabel to the customer in electronic form.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request, wherein the return service request containsshipping information, the shipping information comprising an addressassociated with the customer and an address associated with a consignee;assigning a package tracking number to the return transaction;generating the shipping label based at least in part on the shippinginformation and the package tracking number; and providing the customerwith an electronic image of the generated shipping label.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request, wherein the return service request containsshipping information, the shipping information comprising an addressassociated with the customer and an address associated with a consignee;assigning a package tracking number to the return transaction;generating the shipping label based at least in part on the shippinginformation and the package tracking number; and delivering anelectronic image of the shipping label to a browser associated with thecustomer.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request, wherein the return service request containsshipping information, the shipping information comprising an addressassociated with the customer and an address associated with a consignee;assigning a package tracking number to the return transaction;generating the shipping label based at least in part on the shippinginformation and the package tracking number; storing an electronic imageof the shipping label; and sending the customer a link associated withthe stored image.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request; generating the shipping label based atleast in part on the return service request; formatting a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform resource locator address; providing the customer withthe label delivery link; and delivering the shipping label to a browserassociated with the customer upon activation of the label delivery link.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request; generating the shipping label based atleast in part on the return service request; formatting a label deliverylink that is associated with the shipping label and includes a hypertextlink to a uniform resource locator address; providing the merchant withthe label delivery link; and delivering the shipping label to a browserassociated with the customer upon activation of the label delivery link.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention a method ofelectronically providing a shipping label to a customer that wishes toreturn a good that was previously purchased from a merchant is disclosedthat includes the steps of initiating a return transaction upon receiptof a return service request; generating a shipping label based at leastin part on the return service request; printing the shipping label at acarrier facility; taking the printed shipping label from the carrierfacility to the customer; affixing the shipping label to a packagecontaining the good to be returned; and delivering the package to themerchant.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodimentsof the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied inmany different forms and should not be construed as limited to theembodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided sothat this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fullyconvey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Likenumbers refer to like elements throughout.

Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention will come tomind to one skilled in the art to which this invention pertains havingthe benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions andthe associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that theinvention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed andthat modifications and other embodiments are intended to be includedwithin the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms areemployed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense onlyand not for purposes of limitation.

A. Architecture

FIG. 1 is a high-level diagram of an electronic return system 10 forpracticing various aspects of an embodiment of the present invention. Inthis embodiment, the present invention includes a merchant server 110, acustomer 120, a vendor server 130 and a carrier server 140, each incommunication using a common computer network 100. As used herein, theterm customer 120 includes, without limitation, an individual or anentity, with or without a personal computer. In the disclosedembodiment, the common computer network 100 is the Internet. But it willbe readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the presentinvention may be implemented in any networked environment. Moreover, andas disclosed in more detail below, some of the communications describedherein may occur by means other than the common computer network 100.

As described herein, the customer 120 is the buyer of a good that wishesto return it. In a preferred embodiment, the merchant 110 is the entitythat sold the good to the customer 120 and the vendor 130 is the entitythat receives the good that is being returned. In some cases, of course,a merchant may require that goods be returned directly to the merchant,in which case a vendor may not be involved in the returns process.Although the present invention is broad enough to include thissituation, in the disclosed embodiment it will be assumed that amerchant and a vendor are involved in the returns process. Finally,other electronic returns models can, of course, exist that make use ofthe present invention and these are intended to be encompassed by thefollowing disclosure as well.

In a preferred embodiment, the merchant 110, vendor 130 and carrier 140servers are capable of transmitting and receiving data over the network100 using standard Internet protocols, including HTTP and HTTPS.Similarly, the customer 120 has a computer that can send and receiveelectronic mail and that is equipped with a web browser capable ofviewing web pages. As explained below, however, the present inventioncan be implemented even if one or more of these entities are notconnected to the network 100. As a non-limiting example, the electronicreturn system described herein will work if a customer 120 uses a phonerather than a computer to contact a merchant to request a return.

In addition, the present invention may apply to the situation in which acustomer buys a good from a physical location, such as a merchant retailstore and later decides to return the good. Rather than returning to thephysical location of the merchant, the customer may elect to use thepresent invention to initiate the return.

Also in a preferred embodiment, an online return application 150 and alabel generation application 160 reside on the carrier server 140, and amerchant return application 115 resides on the merchant server 110. Itwill be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that one ormore of these applications can reside elsewhere. For example, a labelgeneration application may reside on a separate server operated by thecarrier or might exist as a carrier component on the merchant server110. The operations of the various applications are described in detailbelow and the present invention is broad enough and intended toencompass embodiments in which the applications reside on these or othercomputers.

B. Operation

In accordance with the present invention, several embodiments of asystem are herein described that will process a customer's request toreturn a good purchased from a merchant. FIG. 2 is a high-level processflow diagram that illustrates several of these embodiments.

In each of the herein-described systems, a customer contacts a merchantand requests the return of a good. Upon approval of the return request,the merchant contacts an online return application 150 and provides theshipping information necessary to generate a return shipping label. Ineach of the described embodiments, the ship from information is addressinformation associated with the customer. The merchant may have the shipfrom information on file or may prompt the customer to enter and/ormodify the ship from information as part of the return transaction. Thedestination or consignee information of the shipping label may be amerchant address or a vendor address, depending on where the product isto be returned.

In the first process flow shown in FIG. 2, the carrier generates a labelin Step 1 and returns the label to the merchant in Step 2. As describedin greater detail below, the shipping label that is generated andtransmitted to the merchant may be formatted via Graphics InterchangeFormat (GIF), Eltron Programming Language (EPL2), portable documentformat (PDF) or via other formats known in the art. The merchant thenhas the option of presenting the label image to the customer's browser(Step 3) or to store the label on the merchant server and provide thecustomer with a hyper-text link to the label via email (Steps 4 and 5).

Another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated by the secondprocess flow of FIG. 2. In this process flow, instead of transmitting alabel image, the carrier generates a label delivery link to the carrierserver. In this embodiment, the information necessary to generate ashipping label is embedded in the link. When the label delivery link isactivated, either by the merchant or customer, a call is made to thelabel generation servlet and a shipping label is dynamically generatedand delivered to the customer browser.

In Step 10, the carrier generates a label delivery link in response to areturn request. If the merchant decides to have the label delivery linksent directly to the customer, the process proceeds to Step 11 and thecarrier sends an email containing the label link to the customer. InStep 12, the customer activates the label delivery link, which causes ashipping label to be generated and delivered to the customer's browser.Alternatively, the merchant can have the process proceed to Step 13where the label delivery link is sent to the merchant. At that point,the merchant can either activate the label link and have the shippinglabel delivered to the customer browser (Step 14), or the merchant canforward the label delivery link to the customer via email and permit thecustomer to activate the link (Steps 15 and 16).

In the final process flow shown in FIG. 2, the online return application150 determines the carrier site closest to the customer and prints thegenerated shipping label at the local carrier site (Step 20). Theprocess then can proceed to Step 21 wherein a carrier driver takes thelabel to the customer, affixes the label to the package and accepts thepackage. Alternatively, the carrier will mail the label to the customerand have the customer assume responsibility for affixing the label anddelivering the labeled package to a carrier drop off location.

The following paragraphs describe in greater detail the variousembodiments summarized above.

FIG. 3 is a high-level diagram that illustrates a first method by whichan online return application 150 processes a return request from acustomer 120. The process starts in Step 200 with a customer 120contacting a merchant and notifying the merchant that the customerwishes to return a good that the customer previously purchased. Thefollowing paragraphs describe a situation in which a customer 120contacts the merchant through a merchant website. But it will be readilyapparent that a customer 120 might request a return over the telephonethrough a customer service representative or by phoning the merchantdirectly. These and other methods by which a customer 120 might submit areturn request are encompassed by this invention.

FIGS. 4A-4F illustrate the type of web pages that a merchant might useto permit a user to submit a return request. The term user is usedrather than customer to expressly include the situation in which acustomer 120 communicates with a customer service representative thatuses a merchant website to enter the customer's return request.

FIG. 4A shows a merchant web page that lists the prior orders 200 that acustomer 120 has placed with the merchant along with the order date 205,total 210 and status 215 associated with each order 200. For each order200, the customer 120 is given the option of clicking on a hyperlinklabeled “Track” 220 to track an order shipment or “Return” 225 toinitiate the process of requesting a return. Additional options on theweb page of FIG. 4A include links to change billing 230 and shippingaddress 235 information.

In this example, if the customer 120 clicks the return link 225corresponding to order number 815499 the merchant server 110 links to aweb page such as that shown in FIG. 4B. This web page lists the goodsthat comprise order 815499 and includes a stockkeeping unit (SKU) number250, a good description 255, the quantity 260 of a particular goodpurchased in the order and a price 265 paid for the good. There are twogoods listed in FIG. 4B: a 56K V90 KFLEX Dual Mode PCI D/F/V ModemMotorola Chip (“Motorola chip”) and a 50× Reader EIDE 650A 128k 85 ms6000 kb/sec Vert Mnt Capb (“50.times.reader”). In this example, a returnmerchandise authorization (RMA) #319910 has already been issued for theMotorola chip. This may be because the customer 120 previously submitteda return request for the Motorola chip or that the merchant has a policyto automatically grant return requests associated with the chip. As tothe 50× reader, the customer 120 is given the option of checking a checkbox 270 to request a return of that item.

After checking the check box 270 associated with the 50× reader andclicking on the Returned Check Item(s) box 275, the customer 120proceeds to FIG. 4C. With reference to FIGS. 4C-4E, the customer 120 isnext prompted for information about the good being returned. Thisinformation may for example aid the merchant in determining whether toauthorize the return and/or to determine whether the good should bereturned to the merchant or to the vendor that supplied the good. Inthis example, the customer 120 is prompted to supply the reason for thereturn 280 (FIG. 4C), whether the package has been opened 285 (FIG. 4D)and whether the customer 120 seeks a credit or a replacement 290 (FIG.4E). These steps are presented for illustrative purposes only and itshould be readily apparent that different merchants will use differentcriteria to determine whether a good may be returned and under whatconditions. Moreover, a merchant may use an automatic returns processlike the one described herein or may alternatively review each return onan individual basis.

Upon entering the requested information, the customer 120 clicks theRequest an RMA# button 295 and the process proceeds to FIG. 4F. In thisexample, the merchant has authorized the return and assigned a RMAnumber of 323530 to the 50× reader. In an alternative embodiment, themerchant does not authorize returns immediately and the customer 120receives a web page with a message indicating that the return requestwill be processed. Once the merchant approves the return request andassigns a RMA number to the transaction, a shipping label link 300 issent to the customer 120. In one embodiment, the merchant presents ashipping label in the customer browser. In a preferred embodiment, themerchant emails a label delivery link 300 to the customer 120 and thecustomer 120 presents the shipping label to the customer browser byactivating the link. Additional embodiments and methods of presenting ashipping label to a customer are intended to be encompassed by thepresent invention, some of which are discussed more fully herein.

When the customer 120 clicks on the label delivery link 300, thecustomer's return request is sent from the merchant website to amerchant return application 115. In a preferred embodiment, the merchantreturn application 115 resides on the same server as the merchantwebsite. But it will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in theart that a merchant return application may reside on a separate serveror on a stand-alone device. The merchant return application 115 confirmsthat the customer 120 has provided the necessary returns information,validates the data provided and generates a return service request 305.The return service request 305 is then sent to the merchant server 110where it is forwarded to the carrier server 140 via the common computernetwork 100.

In a preferred embodiment, the return service request 305 is formattedas an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file. XML is well known to one ofordinary skill in the art as an open standard for defining markuplanguages to represent structured information over the Internet. Ingeneral, XML describes a class of data objects called XML documents andpartially describes the behavior of computer programs that process them.The use of XML in connection with the present invention is forillustrative purposes only and it will be readily apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art that the present invention may be implementedusing other data formats.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show a typical XML return service request 305. In thisnon-limiting example, a return service request 305 includes accessrequest information such as the merchant's access license number 310,userid 315 and password 320, label specification information 322 such asa print method 325, stock size 330, HTTP user agent 332, and imageformat 335, shipment information 337 such as shipper 340 (the merchant),destination or ship to 345 (the vendor) and origination or ship from 350(the customer 120) data, return service 351, service 352, paymentinformation 355 and package information 360. In a preferred embodiment,the package information 360 includes a vendor email address 365 and anundeliverable email address 370, both of which are discussed in greaterdetail below.

Returning to the embodiment of FIG. 3, in Step 210 the online returnapplication 150 receives the return service request 305 created by themerchant return application 115 and transmitted by the merchant server110. In a preferred embodiment, the online return application 150resides on the carrier server 140. But it will be readily apparent toone of ordinary skill in the art that the online return application 115may reside on a separate server or on a stand-alone device. Uponreceipt, the online return application 150 verifies that the validity ofthe data stored in the return service request 305 and assigns a packagetracking number 375 (as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 8B) to the returntransaction. In a preferred embodiment, when a package tracking number375 is assigned, the shipping information related to the returntransaction is stored in a package tracking database. Later, when thepackage is shipped, the parties to the transaction can track theprogress of the package through the carrier system using the packagetracking number 375. In a preferred embodiment, the online returnapplication 150 does not itself assign a package tracking number 375,but communicates with another carrier application that assigns packagetracking numbers 375 and tracks packages shipped within the carriersystem.

In Step 215, the online return application 150 forwards the returnservice request 305 to a label generation application 160. In apreferred embodiment, the online return application 150 sends the labelgeneration application 160 only the shipping and label information thatis required to generate a package label. The online return application150 thus includes the additional functionality of extracting theshipping and label information from the return service request 305 andreformatting the information into a file that is inputted into the labelgeneration application 160. The label generation application 160 mayreside on the same server as the online return application 150 or mayreside on another server or on a stand-alone device.

In Step 220, the label generation application 160 generates a returnshipping label 400 from the shipping and label information, andtransmits the return shipping label 400 back to the online returnapplication 150. The process of generating a return shipping label 400is well known to one of ordinary skill in the art and therefore, is notdescribed in detail herein.

FIG. 6 illustrates a return shipping label 400 in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the returnshipping label 400 consists of two portions: a label area 405 and a textarea 410. The label area 405 includes an origination shipping address415, a destination shipping address 420, Maxicode™ 425, carrier servicelevel 427, package weight 430, post office code 435, post office barcode 440, package tracking number 375, carrier bar code 450, billingcode 455, merchandise description 460, service identification 465, andRMA number 470. The text area 410 includes instructions as to how toprint and affix the label 475, shipping instructions 480, and a drop-offlocation link 485. In one embodiment, the drop-off location link 485 isa link that includes the zip code of the origination shipping addressembedded in the URL address. When the link is activated, the userreceives a web page that lists the carrier drop-off locations that areclosest to the origination shipping address. Alternative embodiments ofthe return shipping label 400 are also well-known in the art and areencompassed by the present invention, and may include such additionalfeatures as packing instructions, advertisements or a link to a merchantor vendor web site. Additional links may be added to allow a customer toprovide feedback or complaints.

Returning to FIG. 3, in Step 225 the online return application 150transmits the return shipping label 400 to the merchant server 110accompanied by a return service response 500. The return shipping label400 may be transmitted as a GIF, EPL2, or PDF file or via other formatsthat are well known in the art for transmitting an image. In oneembodiment, the return service response 500 is formatted as XMLformatted data, but could readily be formatted using other formats knownin the art. FIG. 7 illustrates a typical XML return service response 500that a merchant might receive in Step 225. In this embodiment, thereturn service response 500 includes a response section 505 with fieldsfor transaction reference 510 and response status code 515. Thetransaction reference 510 is a field for caller data. In a preferredembodiment, the transaction reference 510 allows the customer to addinformation to tie the response to the original return request. Theresponse status code 515 notifies the merchant if an error occurredduring the processing of the XML return service request. The XML returnservice response 500 also includes a shipment results section 520, abilling weight section 525, a shipment identification number 530 and apackage tracking section 535. In one embodiment, the shipmentidentification number 530 is used to support multi-piece packageshipments. In many cases, the package tracking number 375 will be usedas the shipment identification number 530. In multi-piece shipments, theshipment identification number 530 is the package tracking number 375 ofthe first package.

Returning again to FIG. 3, in Step 230 the merchant provides the returnshipping label 400 to the customer 120. In a preferred embodiment, theforegoing process of generating a return service request 305 andgenerating a return shipping label 400 is near instantaneous. Thus, anelectronic image of the return shipping label 400 is delivered to thecustomer's browser in response to the customer's activation of theshipping link label 300 while the customer is still on the merchantwebsite. Alternatively, the steps of generating and processing a returnservice request 305 may not be instantaneous and the merchant mayprovide the customer 120 with an electronic image of a return shippinglabel 400 at a later time. Delivery of the return shipping label 400from the merchant to the customer 120 can occur via email, the postalsystem or by other methods discussed herein. In one embodiment, themerchant or the carrier may store the electronic image of the returnshipping label 400 on one of the merchant server 110 and carrier server140 and the merchant will send an email to the customer 120 thatcontains a link to the label image. Alternatively, a return shippinglabel 400 may be printed by a carrier and hand-delivered by a driver tothe customer 120. Additional methods of providing an electronic image ofa return shipping label 400 to a customer 120 exist are known in the artand are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

In Step 235, the online return application 150 sends an electronicreturn notification 550 to the vendor server 130 indicating that areturn service request 305 has been processed and that a customer 120intends to ship a returned good to the vendor. In a preferredembodiment, an electronic return notification 550 is generated for everyreturn service request 305 processed by the online return application150. In an alternative embodiment, an electronic return notification 550is automatically generated whenever the destination shipping address 420is different from the merchant's shipping address. In still anotherembodiment, an electronic return notification is generated whenever themerchant includes a vendor email address 365 in the return servicerequest 305.

FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate an electronic return notification 550 inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In thisembodiment, the electronic return notification 550 consists of twoportions: a human-readable area 555 (FIG. 8A) and a machine-readablearea 560 (FIG. 8B). The human-readable area 555 includes an originationshipping address 415, destination shipping address 420, package trackingnumber 375, merchandise description 460, UPS service level 427, packageweight 430 and RMA number 470. In this manner, the human-readable area555 of the electronic return notification 550 provides returnstransaction information to vendors that rely on individuals rather thanmachines to track incoming packages and returns.

FIG. 8B illustrates the machine-readable area 560 of an electronicreturn notification 550 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention. In this embodiment, the machine-readable area 560 isformatted as an XML document, but it will be readily apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art that other data formats exist and may be usedwith the present invention. The machine-readable area 560 also containsthe returns transaction information, but allows a vendor with anautomated shipping system to process the electronic return notification550 without requiring a manual review of the email text. In a preferredembodiment, the machine-readable area 560 includes shipper information340, an origination shipping address 415, a destination shipping address420, a merchandise description 460, package weight 430, package trackingnumber 375 and RMA number 470. Also in a preferred embodiment, themachine-readable area 560 is appended to the human-readable area 555 andcomprises an electronic mail. But it will be readily apparent thateither or both sections of the electronic return notification 550 can betransmitted separately and by means other than email. Thus, in anillustrative alternate embodiment, in Step 235 a vendor might receive afacsimile of just the human-readable area 555 of the electronic returnnotification 550.

FIG. 9 is a high-level diagram that illustrates a second method by whichan online return application 150 processes a return request. The processstarts in Step 700 with a customer 120 contacting a merchant andnotifying the merchant that the customer wishes to return a good thatthe customer 120 previously purchased. This notification may or may notoccur electronically but in a preferred embodiment occurs via a merchantweb site that resides on the merchant server 110.

In Step 705, the merchant return application 115 processes the returnrequest and generates a return service request 305, which is transmittedto the label generation application 160. In a preferred embodiment, thereturn service request 305 is formatted as an XML document but otherformats are known in the art and may be used with the present invention.Upon receipt of the return service request 305, the online returnapplication 150 verifies the validity of the transmitted data andassigns a package tracking number 375 to the return request. In analternative embodiment, the online return application 150 does notitself assign a package tracking number 375 to the return transaction,but communicates with another carrier application that assigns packagetracking numbers and tracks packages shipped within the carrier system.

In Step 710, the online return application 150 forwards the returnservice request 305 to a label generation application 160. In analternative embodiment, the online return application 160 extracts theshipping and package label information from the return service request305 and reformats the information before it is sent to the labelgeneration application 160.

In Step 715, the label generation application 160 generates a returnshipping label 400 from the shipping and package label information, andtransmits the return shipping label 400 back to the online returnapplication 150.

In Step 720, the online return application 150 sends a return serviceconfirmation 600 to the merchant server 140. In a preferred embodimentthe return service confirmation 600 is formatted as an XML document, butit will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art thatother data formats exist and may be used with the present invention. Inone embodiment, the information contained in the return serviceconfirmation 600 is the same as that in the electronic returnverification 550 (see FIG. 8 b). In alternative embodiments, the returnservice confirmation 600 may include a link to the return shipping label400 or an encoded label delivery link 625 (discussed below).

In Step 725, the online return application 150 sends an electronicreturn notification 550 to the vendor server 130 indicating that areturn service request 305 has been processed and that a customer 120intends to ship a returned good to the vendor. In a preferredembodiment, the electronic return notification 550 has amachine-readable area 560 appended to the human-readable area 555 toallow automatic input into a vendor shipping system without the need forhuman intervention. In alternative embodiments, the returned good isshipped directly to the merchant and no electronic return notification550 is generated as no vendor is involved. Alternatively, only themachine-readable area 560 of the electronic return notification 550 issupplied to the vendor.

In Step 730, the online return application 150 generates and sends areturn shipping email 630 to the customer 120. In one embodiment, thereturn shipping email 630 includes a link to an image file of a returnshipping label 400. The return shipping email 630 can also include anencoded label delivery link 625. In a preferred embodiment, the onlinereturn application 150 generates the encoded label delivery link 625,which is a hypertext link to a uniform resource locator (URL) withadditional information appended that identifies the return shippinglabel 400 generated for the return service request 305. In a preferredembodiment of the delivery link 625 includes a link to a URL. But itwill be readily apparent that the delivery link 625 may include anyencoded or encrypted string of characters which will cause the onlinereturn application or other application in the return services system torespond with an image of the desired shipping label. Moreover, theshipping label delivered to the customer browser may be returned from astorage location or generated dynamically at the time of activation ofthe link 625.

In a preferred embodiment, the label delivery link 625 when activatedlinks to the URL of a label generation servlet 650. Servlets are wellknown in the art as Java applications that run in a web server orapplication server and provide server-side processing. Because they arewritten in Java, servlets are portable between servers and operatingsystems. The servlet programming interface (Java Servlet API) is astandard part of the Java 2 platform, enterprise edition (J2EE). If aWeb server, such as Microsoft's Internet Information Server (IIS), doesnot run servlets natively, a third-party servlet plug-in can beinstalled to add the runtime support.

The use of a Java servlet in this embodiment is for illustrativepurposes only. One of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognizethat there are many methods of invoking the dynamic generation orrecovery of the shipping label. For example, the target of the URL couldbe an application written in C, C++, or any other computer languageinvoked through a common gateway interface or via other means.

In an alternative embodiment, the label delivery link 625 when activatedlinks to the URL of the online generation application 150, whichestablishes the link to a label generation servlet 650.

In a preferred embodiment, the information appended to the URL in thelabel delivery link 625 to identify a return shipping label 400 includesa package tracking number 375, a locality string 635, a merchantregistration identification 640 and, optionally, a return shipping labelcreation date 630. Because this information identifies a return shippinglabel 400 it contains potentially sensitive shipping information;therefore, in a preferred embodiment, the information is encrypted toprevent unauthorized access as the return shipping email 630 passesthrough a computer network 100 such as the Internet. In the preferredembodiment, the information string appended to the label delivery link625 is encrypted using triple data encryption standard (DES) techniquesand is encoded.

In Step 735, the customer 120 receives the return service email 800 andactivates the label generation servlet 650 by clicking on the labeldelivery link 625. The foregoing steps of processing a return servicerequest 305 may be near instantaneous, or there may be a delay betweenthe customer's request to make a return and the transmittal of a returnservice email 800 containing a label delivery link 625. Upon activationof the label delivery link 625, the information string is decoded anddecrypted. In one embodiment, the online return application 150 receivesthe information string and performs the decoding and decryptionprocesses. In an alternative embodiment, the label generation servlet650 performs the decoding and decryption processes.

The online return application 150 extracts the package tracking number375 and merchant registration identification 640 from the decrypted anddecoded information string. This information is then compared against areturn label database 670 to retrieve the shipping information that isnecessary to regenerate the requested return shipping label 400. In oneembodiment, a new record is added to the return label database 670 everytime that a return shipping label 400 is generated. In anotherembodiment, the return label database 670 is populated only when acustomer 120, merchant or vendor has requested that a return shippinglabel 400 be saved for possible recovery and/or regeneration. In yetanother embodiment, the shipping information stored on the return labeldatabase 670 is kept for a finite period and is erased or migrated afterthe expiration of a predetermined period or occurrence of apredetermined condition.

In Step 740, the online return application 150 generates a returnshipping label 400 using the shipping information obtained from thereturn label database 670 and transmits the return shipping label 400 tothe customer 120. In one embodiment, a copy of the return shipping label400 associated with the decoded and decrypted package tracking number375 and merchant registration identification 640 is stored on the returnlabel database 670. In another embodiment, a copy of the return shippinglabel 400 is not stored on the return label database 670 and the onlinereturn application 150 sends the associated shipping information to thelabel generation application 160 to have the return shipping label 400generated.

In one embodiment, a return shipping label 400 and/or the shippinginformation necessary to regenerate a return shipping label 400 isindexed by the package tracking number 375 and merchant registrationidentification 640. In an effort to obtain additional security, analternative embodiment may also require a return shipping label creationdate 630 to regenerate a return shipping label 400. In such anembodiment, the return shipping label creation date 630 may be includedin the encrypted and encoded information string transmitted to theonline return application 150 upon activation of the label delivery link625. Label recovery is also available in the present invention. Labelrecovery exists to cover the contingency of a customer being unable toprint a label. In such case, the merchant has the ability to transmit alabel recovery request to the online return application and receiveanother copy of the return shipping label generated for the originalreturn service request. For example, upon receipt of a recovery request,another copy of the electronic image of a return shipping label may beprovided to the merchant or, alternatively, the label delivery linkassociated with the original return request may be regenerated andre-transmitted.

FIG. 10 is a high-level diagram that illustrates a second method bywhich an online return application 150 processes a return request. Theprocess starts in Step 800 with a customer 120 contacting a merchant andnotifying the merchant that the customer wishes to return a good thatthe customer 120 previously purchased. This notification may or may notoccur electronically but in a preferred embodiment occurs via a merchantweb site that resides on the merchant server 110.

In Step 805, the merchant application 115 processes the return requestand generates a return service request 305, which is transmitted to thelabel generation application 150. In a preferred embodiment, the returnservice request 305 is formatted as an XML document but other formatsare known in the art and may be used with the present invention. Uponreceipt of the return service request 305, the online return application150 verifies the validity of the transmitted data and assigns a packagetracking number 375 to the return request. In an alternative embodiment,the online return application 150 does not itself assign a packagetracking number 375 to the return transaction, but communicates withanother carrier application that assigns package tracking numbers andtracks packages shipped within the carrier system. In Step 810, theonline return application 150 forwards the return service request 305 toa label generation application 160. Alternatively, the online returnapplication 150 does not send the return service request 305 to thelabel generation application 160 and instead extracts and sends justthat shipping and package label information that is required to generatea return shipping label 400. In Step 815, the label generationapplication 160 generates a return shipping label 400 from the shippingand package label information, and transmits the return shipping label400 back to the online return application 150.

In Step 820, the online return application 150 sends a return serviceconfirmation 600 to the merchant server 140. In a preferred embodimentthe return service confirmation 700 is formatted as an XML document, butit will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art thatother data formats exist and may be used with the present invention.Also, in a preferred embodiment, the return service confirmation 600includes an image file for the return shipping label 400. In alternativeembodiments, the return service confirmation 600 includes a link to thereturn shipping label 400 or, if security is a necessary or desired, toan encoded label delivery link 625.

In Step 825, the online return application 150 sends an electronicreturn notification 550 to the vendor server 130 indicating that areturn service request 305 has been processed and that a customer 120intends to ship a returned good to the vendor. In a preferredembodiment, the electronic return notification 550 has amachine-readable area 560 appended to the human-readable area 560 toallow automatic input into a vendor shipping system without the need forhuman intervention. In alternative embodiments, the returned good isshipped directly to the merchant and no electronic return notification550 is generated as no vendor is involved.

In Step 830, the online return application 150 accesses a carrierfacility database 690 using the origination shipping address 415 todetermine which local carrier facility 695 is responsible for deliveriesto and from the customer's address. The carrier facility database in apreferred embodiment resides on a carrier server 140, but it will bereadily apparent that carrier facility information can be stored on awide variety of computers and/or other electronic devices known in theart. In a preferred embodiment, the online return application 150 thentransmits an image of the return shipping label 400 to a printer locatedat the local carrier facility 695 where the return shipping label 400 isprinted. In an alternative embodiment, the online return applicationsends the return shipping label 400 to a computer or server at the localcarrier facility 695 where an operator prints the return shipping label400.

In Step 835, a driver from the local carrier facility 695 picks up thereturn shipping label 400 and takes it to the origination shippingaddress 415, which in a preferred embodiment is the customer's address.The driver then picks up the good that is being returned from thecustomer 120, affixes the return shipping label 400 to the package andplaces it in the carrier shipping system where it is ultimatelydelivered to the destination shipping address 420.

If the customer 120 is not home when the driver attempts to pick up thepackage, the driver may leave the return shipping label 400 for thecustomer 120 or may attempt to pick up the package at a later date. In apreferred embodiment, the carrier service level 427 determines whichaction a driver takes if the customer 120 is not home for the pick upattempt. In one embodiment, a carrier offers a single attempt service inwhich the driver makes one attempt to pick up the package. In the singleattempt service, the driver leaves the return shipping label 400 at thecustomer's residence if the customer 120 is not home when the pick upattempt is made. The customer 120 thus is required to affix the returnshipping label 400 to the package and place the package in the carriershipping system by delivering it to a carrier drop-off location. Inalternative embodiments, other carrier service levels 427 are availablein which the driver will return on multiple occasions to try to pick upthe package. In the preferred embodiment, a carrier offers singleattempt and three attempt carrier service levels 427 though other levelsof service can be offered in accordance with the present invention.

Another aspect of the present invention is a system and method forhandling undelivered email. Invalid email addresses are a recurringproblem in any system that relies upon communication through email andthe problems are exacerbated in automated systems due to the lack ofhuman involvement. In many cases, an invalid email address is a resultof a simple typographical error, but invalid addresses can occur fromoutdated Internet accounts or any of a host of other reasons that arewell known in the art.

In the present invention, communication between the customer 120,merchant server 110, carrier server 140 and vendor server can occur viaemail. For example, in a preferred embodiment a carrier relies upon thevendor email address 365 provided by the merchant in the return servicerequest 305 to transmit an electronic return notification 550 to thevendor server 130. If the vendor email address 365 provided by themerchant is invalid or otherwise undeliverable, there is a possibilitythat the vendor server 130 will not receive the electronic returnnotification 550. At a minimum, human intervention by the carrier and/orthe merchant may be required to address the problem.

FIG. 11 is a high-level block diagram of a method of handlingundeliverable emails in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention. In Step 900, the online return application 150 receives areturn service request 305 from a merchant that includes a vendor emailaddress 365. In a preferred embodiment, the return service request 305also includes a bounce email address 370. The bounce email address 370may be the merchant's email address, the vendor's email address or acustomer service or other email address of a person or persons that areprepared to handle undelivered emails.

In Step 910, the bounce email address (e.g., merchant email address)will be validated and verified before generating an electronic returnnotification 550. In Step 920, the online return application 150generates and sends an electronic return notification 550. In apreferred embodiment, the electronic return notification 550 includes anencrypted XML document attached to the email that includes the bounceemail address 370. In a preferred embodiment, the XML document isencrypted using triple data encryption standard (DES) techniques, butother encryption techniques are well known in the art and can be usedwith the present invention.

In Step 930, the online return application 150 determines whether theelectronic return notification 550 is delivered to the customersuccessfully. If the electronic return notification 550 is delivered,the process ends at Step 950. If the electronic return notification 550is returned as undeliverable (Step 940), the online return application150 retrieves the XML attachment from the undelivered email and forwardsthe electronic return notification 550 to the bounce email address 370.The online return application 150 forwards the undelivered email to themerchant server 110 under the assumption that the merchant or otherentity associated with the bounce email address 370 is equipped toaddress the issue that caused the electronic return notification 550 notto be delivered. One of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognizethat the undelivered email may also be forwarded to a customer 120, amerchant return application 115 or to any other person or entity thathas a valid email address.

The electronic return system 10, which comprises an ordered listing ofselectable services can be embodied in any computer-readable medium foruse by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus,or device, such as a computer-based system, processor-containing system,or other system that can fetch the instructions from the instructionexecution system, apparatus, or device and execute the instructions. Inthe context of this document, a “computer-readable medium” can be anymeans that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport theprogram for use by or in connection with the instruction executionsystem, apparatus, or device. The computer readable medium can be, forexample but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical,electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, device,or propagation medium. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) ofthe computer-readable medium would include the following: an electricalconnection (electronic) having one or more wires, a portable computerdiskette (magnetic), a random access memory (RAM) (magnetic), aread-only memory (ROM) (magnetic), an erasable programmable read-onlymemory (EPROM or Flash memory) (magnetic), an optical fiber (optical),and a portable compact disc read-only memory (CDROM) (optical). Notethat the computer-readable medium could even be paper or anothersuitable medium upon which the program is printed, as the program can beelectronically captured, via for instance optical scanning of the paperor other medium, then compiled, interpreted or otherwise processed in asuitable manner if necessary, and then stored in a computer memory.

Further, any process descriptions or blocks in flow charts should beunderstood as representing modules, segments, or portions of code whichinclude one or more executable instructions for implementing specificlogical functions or steps in the process, and alternate implementationsare included within the scope of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention in which functions may be executed out of order from thatshown or discussed, including substantially concurrently or in reverseorder, depending on the functionality involved, as would be understoodby those reasonably skilled in the art of the present invention.

It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of thepresent invention, particularly any “preferred embodiments” are merelypossible examples of the implementations, merely set forth for a clearunderstanding of the principles of the invention. Any variations andmodifications may be made to the above-described embodiments of theinvention without departing substantially from the spirit of theprinciples of the invention. All such modifications and variations areintended to be included herein within the scope of the disclosure andpresent invention and protected by the following claims.

In concluding the detailed description, it should be noted that it willbe obvious to those skilled in the art that many variations andmodifications can be made to the preferred embodiment withoutsubstantially departing from the principles of the present invention.Also, such variations and modifications are intended to be includedherein within the scope of the present invention as set forth in theappended claims. Further, in the claims hereafter, the structures,materials, acts and equivalents of all means or step-plus functionelements are intended to include any structure, materials or acts forperforming their cited functions.

That which is claimed:
 1. An electronic return shipping system,comprising: one or more computers and a network wherein said one or morecomputers are configured to: receive a return service request to returna good previously purchased by a customer from a merchant; generate ashipping label based at least in part on said return service request,wherein the shipping label includes a package tracking number; andformat and send a label delivery link that is associated with saidshipping label and includes a hypertext link to a uniform locatoraddress.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein said one or more computersare configured to generate said return service request as an extensiblemarkup language document.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein said one ormore computers are configured to obtain a package tracking number forsaid return service request and include said package tracking number onsaid shipping label.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein said one or morecomputers are configured to send said label delivery link to saidmerchant via electronic mail.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein said oneor more computers are configured to send said label delivery link tosaid customer via electronic mail.
 6. The system of claim 1, whereinsaid uniform locator address of said label delivery link and said one ormore computers are configured to deliver said shipping label to abrowser associated with said customer upon activation of said labeldelivery link.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein said label deliverylink includes at least one of a locality string, a merchant registrationidentification and a shipping label creation date.
 8. The system ofclaim 1, wherein said one or more computers are configured to encrypt atleast a portion of said label delivery link.
 9. The system of claim 1,wherein said one or more computers are configured to encode at least aportion of said label delivery link.
 10. The system of claim 1, whereinsaid one or more computers are configured to generate an electronicreturn notification.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein said electronicreturn notification comprises a human-readable portion and amachine-readable portion.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein said oneor more computers are configured to send said electronic returnnotification to said merchant via an electronic mail.
 13. The system ofclaim 11, wherein said one or more computers are configured to send saidelectronic return notification to a vendor that supplied the merchantwith said good to be returned.
 14. The system of claim 13, wherein oneor more computers are configured to add a vendor email address and abounce email address to said electronic mail, and wherein said onlinereturn application is further configured to forward said electronic mailto said bounce email address upon receipt of a notification that saidelectronic mail could not be delivered to said vendor email address. 15.The system of claim 14, wherein said bounce email address is an addressassociated with said merchant.
 16. An electronic return shipping system,comprising: one or more computers and a network wherein said one or morecomputers are configured to: receive a return service request to returna good previously purchased by a first entity from a second entity;generate a shipping label based at least in part on said return servicerequest, wherein the shipping label includes a package tracking number;and format and send a label delivery link that is associated with saidshipping label and includes a hypertext link to a uniform locatoraddress.
 17. A non-transitory computer-readable medium havingcomputer-readable code embodied in said medium, said computer-readablecode comprising: receiving a return service request from a merchantapplication over a computer network generated by said merchantapplication in response to a request from a customer to return a goodpreviously purchased from a merchant; generating a shipping label basedat least in part on said return service request, wherein the shippinglabel includes a package tracking number; and formatting and sending alabel delivery link that is associated with said shipping label andincludes a hypertext link to a uniform locator address.